


Take a chance

by Ereana



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Confessions, Fluff, Friendship, M/M, Mutual Pining, Other Ships Not Mentioned in Tags, Pining Hinata Shouyou, Team Bonding, Yachi is a great friend, oblivious atsumu
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-25
Updated: 2020-09-25
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:47:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,566
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26649268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ereana/pseuds/Ereana
Summary: Hinata has a problem, and it's a big one. A big, tall, handsome problem that has the most amazing smile Hinata has ever seen. He's worried, frustrated, and so close to banging his head against the wall repeatedly until his stupid brain stops waxing lyrical about one Miya Atsumu. If he had his way nothing would change.Luckily, a combination of Yachi, the weekly MSBY game night, and a few (not-so) sneaky friends intervene to force his hand.Atsuhina Exchange gift for Izayacchi.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou & Yachi Hitoka, Hinata Shouyou/Miya Atsumu
Comments: 58
Kudos: 378
Collections: AtsuHina Exchange





	Take a chance

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Izayacchi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Izayacchi/gifts).



> Hello! I hope you liked your gift I went with 'msby squad + atsuhina game night or team dinner or something fun with them all together' and added plenty of Yachi and pining Hinata along with a couple of side ships.

Yachi was having a lovely evening.

It had been about one month since the memorable Jackals vs Adlers match and the epic confrontation between Kageyama and Hinata. The alumni of the Karasuno Boys’ Volleyball Club had somehow found the space in their multitude of schedules to meet up and have their own mini-reunion game. Only Noya and Kinoshita hadn’t been able to make it: Kinoshita because his company had needed him to work overtime for that weekend and Noya because he was in the middle of exploring Iceland. The photos of the Northern Lights were beautiful, and the group chat was full of appreciative ‘ooooohs’ and ‘ahhhhs’ and ‘soooo jealous.’

Other than those two, everyone had been able to make it back to Miyagi for the weekend. Coach Ukai and Takeda had even allowed them to use the high school gym for old times’ sake. Of course, it was a bit of a mess with three professional players, and yes, Tsukishima did count even though he tried to brush it off as being completely different from ‘the king and the monster,’ but it had been a lot of fun.

Daichi and Sugawara were part of a local neighbourhood team, and while they were nowhere near the level of their juniors, it did mean it wasn't completely unfair. There were plenty of mistakes, and the walls echoed with laughter and fond recollections of old times. Yachi had stood to the side with Kiyoko, helping out as best she could with a massive grin on her face. She probably looked so silly smiling at nothing, caught up in her own memories of that important time, but it didn’t matter. It’s not like silly was unusual to this odd collection of people.

Eventually, they’d had to leave or they’d miss their dinner reservations. Hinata and Kageyama had, of course, tried to push for one more game, but the combined stern-captain looks from Daichi, Ennoshita, and Yamaguchi had been more than enough to silence the freak duo.

Some things never changed.

The meal was delicious as usual. They’d come here after really important matches either to celebrate victory or drown out losses in tasty food with the noisy, rambunctious atmosphere and familiar voices; if Yachi closed her eyes she could almost imagine she was back in her first year, nervously sitting next to Kiyoko watching the chaos unfold around them and worrying if Tanaka was going to choke as he tried to eat and laugh at the same time.

She’d missed them a lot.

They all kept in touch of course. There was the group chat, the other one which only had her, Tsukishima, Yamaguchi, Kageyama and Hinata (it was called  _ baby crows _ unchanged since the day she’d created it), and while some members were better at keeping in touch than others, it wasn’t like those class reunions she sometimes saw on television where that was the first time they were meeting in ten years.

And no, she hadn’t been worried the first time she’d met up with Yamaguchi and Tsukishima that they’d turn to her and go ‘who are you?’ while looking at her with no recognition. Absolutely not… anymore.

This was very different to the group chat. This was loud and boisterous, with guffaws echoing off the walls and wide smiles that overflowed with genuine joy to be in each other’s company again.

Yes, it was all very familiar. 

But some things changed as well.

They were all adults now, with jobs and studies and new responsibilities. Kiyoko and Tanaka were even married! And oh, it had been a beautiful ceremony. Tanaka had been crying so hard that he hadn’t been able to speak the vows properly, and Noya’s best man speech had the whole party laughing hysterically. Some of them had stayed in Miyagi, whilst others had flown further afield.

One of them in particular had flown very far.

Speaking of. 

Yachi scanned the room to see if she could spot Hinata amongst the others. He wasn’t an easy guy to miss, but she couldn’t see that bright orange hair anywhere. Kageyama was sat next to Suga and Yamaguchi while Tsukishima was suffering Tanaka’s attempts to pile more food on to his plate because “I’m a personal trainer trust me I know what I’m talking about Mr. Pro!” Rather than watch Tsukishima try to refute this, or intercede and spare him, Yachi continued to search for Hinata.

She could have sworn he was sitting next to Narita a second ago.

Pulling out her phone to check if she’d missed a message, she tried to keep her mind calm. She’d always be a little anxious, her imagination would never fully be under control, but it was easier than when she was a teenager. She pushed aside whispers of kidnappers and secret agents — and oh no what if he’s in trouble with the Braziilian mafia and they’ve come to take him — and took another look around the room.

Ah! There he was. She could see him as the restaurant door opened. Why had he gone outside? Then again, it was getting pretty hot inside. She tapped Kiyoko’s shoulder and gestured to the door.

“I’m just going to get some air, be right back.” She said, it would be bad if people started to worry where she had gone too!

Kiyoko smiled and nodded. “Of course, I’ll make sure your food is safe.” Given the ruckus, this was a truly noble promise, and Yachi half-bowed in respect of her heroic senpai.

The evening air felt cool on her skin, and she sighed in relief, the stuffiness of the room replaced by the wide open space of the street. The chilly December air made her breath appear in foggy puffs, and she stuck her hands in her pockets.

Hinata stood a little away from the door with his back against the wall. His eyes were closed, and his head tilted upwards towards the sky. It was a clear night, and even with the light of the street lamps, one or two stars twinkled above them.

He looked so at peace that Yachi was loath to disturb him. Of course he was fine, she’d overreacted. It would be best if she slipped back into the building and pretended she hadn’t come out to check on him like some overbearing relative.

“Hey, Yachi.”

Abort. Abort plan.

Hinata looked at her, he didn’t look angry, so she moved to stand next to him. He really had grown, she actually had to crane her neck up a bit to meet his eyes.

“H-Hey, Hinata. How are things?” That was so lame. She sounded like she was talking to a stranger not one of her best friends. A chuckle cut through her thoughts, and she couldn’t help pouting a little bit at how clearly amused he was.

“Things are good, really good.” He stretched his hands up to the sky. “It was really cool to see everyone again. I have no idea how you and Kiyoko managed it .”

Yachi laughed at that. “It was a lot of work, I'm not going to lie but.” She looked back at the restaurant door. “It was worth it. I’m really happy to see everyone.”

Hinata hummed in response and lowered his hands. It struck her at times.This new calmer version of Hinata, matured on the beaches of Rio. His manic energy not contained exactly but controlled and ready to be unleashed on the court at a moment’s notice.

“So why'd you come outside?”

“Oh I—I uhh just wanted some air. I was getting a little warm.” Again that amused look, but he was kind enough not to call her on the lie. “How about you, Hinata?”

“I came here to do some thinking,” he admitted, his tone turning wistful. “Thought I’d try and straighten out some thoughts that won’t get out of my head.”

Well, that didn’t sound ominous.

“Can I help at all?” She asked, she was well used to being a soundboard for people, and sometimes thoughts needed to be spoken aloud.

Hinata turned to face her fully. He was frowning in concentration and rubbed his chin. She felt a little bit like one of those cakes at the little bakery she liked to stop at before class, like she was being measured up before the deal was sealed.

“Actually, maybe you can!” He leaned forward and his usual wide smile was on full display. “You’re super smart after all.”

“I’m always happy to help you, Hinata. I might not be able to solve it, b—but I’ll do my best!” Ok, game time. Her friend needed her, and she wasn’t going to let him down. All her energy was going towards helping Hinata solve whatever made him come out here and stare at the stars like some hero from an old romantic film.

Hinata took a deep breath and steeled himself like he was about to face a surprise pop quiz in English. Oh dear, this had to be very serious indeed.

“I’m in love with one of my teammates and don’t know what to do about it.” he said, eyes locked on some far off point in the sky a nervous smile curling his mouth.

What!

“Ehhhhhhhhhhhh???!!”

* * *

Miya Atsumu was a menace. 

He was a punishment sent to torment Hinata by the whims of the capricious volleyball gods. 

What had Hinata done to deserve this punishment?

Nothing! Absolutely nothing! He was innocent. He’d never hurt anyone or stolen anything. Ok, maybe that one time he’d cheated at monopoly hadn’t been good exactly, but it had stopped Tomas’ winning streak, and even Meian had agreed he needed to be stopped.

So why was this happening to him? Had he done something terrible in a past life? Was that why he had to suffer every day with these….these  _ feelings _ that made him want to simultaneously scream them out to the world while also jumping into the deepest black hole he could find?

Miya Atsumu was a menace.

He was brilliant. He was skilled. He was smart. He was so hot that Hinata had to rush out of the changing rooms the first time he’d seen him exit the showers dripping wet with a towel loosely tied around his waist.

_ Yes, Bokuto, he was perfectly fine. Did he look red? Oh. Maybe that jog to work had tired him out a bit. That was why he looked like a tomato, not because the sight of his setter bare-chested and glistening nearly caused Hinata to jump him like an animal and find out if those hands were good at more than just tossing balls.  _

That wasn’t the issue.

Physical? He could deal with the physical. He’d had his fair share of flings in Brazil, and he wasn't afraid to admit that the guys on his team were attractive.

It was the non-physical stuff that was driving him insane.

It was the kindness, the humour, the weird little laugh he tried to cover up when people were listening that Hinata thought was adorable. It was movie nights sharing popcorn, and game nights full of jokes and bickering, and falling asleep together on Hinata’s lumpy couch. It was sitting together on long bus rides, Hinata waking up resting against Atsumu’s shoulder, while a hushed voice told the others to ‘shut up or I’m not tossin’ to ya until the second set.’

There were a lot of things like that.

Then there was volleyball. Playing with Atsumu was incredible.  _ This  _ was why he’d left Japan for a country he’d never set foot in before. He wanted to be strong enough for the best setters to send him the tosses he craved like a drug.

Atsumu was one of the best.

To Hinata, he was  _ the _ best. 

With Atsumu by his side, Hinata felt invincible. Atsumu gave him wings that let him fly to the summit again and again. He let him see that beautiful view that Hinata had been chasing since middle school. 

Then one day he’d turned to see Atsumu smiling at him after they pulled off the quick —  _ their quick now _ — and suddenly there was a new sight that set his heart racing. Atsumu was sweaty and panting, but he looked at Hinata like he’d given him the world as his voice trembled with excitement.

“That was perfect, Shouyou-kun!” Hinata had stood there, stunned and stupid when Atsumu pulled him into a crushing hug. “Ain’t nobody gonna stand a chance against us now.” 

With his brain out of commission, his body engaged it’s autopilot and Hinata had managed to return the hug, albeit a little shakily. His heart was racing a mile a minute, like he’d run a marathon instead of jumped for a single toss, and his whole face felt warm. The hug allowed him to hide his flaming cheeks, but he could feel his ears getting hot too  — this was so bad and inappropriate  — no, this couldn’t be happening, and dear god was this a terrible idea and —

Wonderful.

The hug was warm and secure; he could hear Atsumu’s heart beating steadily in his chest. 

“Ya ok, Shouyou-kun? Yer bein’ awfully quiet?” Hinata pulled back and looked up at his setter, his partner, and gave a thumbs up. The smile he pasted on felt wobbly and weak, but it seemed to do the job.

“I’m fine, Atsumu-san. Whoa, that was amazing though! You sent the ball right to my hand like fuah! I could feel it coming, and then it was there and….you’re an amazing setter, Atsumu-san.” The words wouldn’t stop, even as his mind shrieked at him to shut up and think about this new revelation that had shaken everything he thought he knew. “I’m—I’m really glad I joined the Jackals, your tosses are my favourite.”

Leave. He needed to leave right now before he blurted out anything even more incriminating. Thankfully, Atsumu seemed to have sunk into his own stupor, probably wondering what a weirdo his new spiker was, and was too busy gawking after him to properly respond.

The thing about those kinds of realisations? It wasn't really possible to go back to how you were before you knew them.

Ok, so maybe first year Hinata Shouyou had heard the nationally ranked number one setter in Japan promise to toss to him one day and developed a bit of a crush. It was perfectly natural! Atsumu had looked so cool, and he was one of the best players he’d ever seen, and he wanted to toss to  _ Hinata  _ of all people. Atsumu had looked into his eyes and declared him good enough to set to, someone he  _ wanted _ to set for.

He’d been the first setter Hinata didn’t have to ask to toss for him. Even now in the Jackals, Atsumu would approach him with a grin, ball in hand, and offer to toss to him or work on their new move, and it meant so damn much.

Then came second year of high school, and Karasuno had faced Inarizaki again, and the match was just as good as last year. Better in a lot of ways because Hinata had learned to be diligent with his health, and he felt stronger, more secure in himself than his rookie self from last year. Better because Atsumu was looking at him now and not just Kageyama. Better because of moments in the match when they’d caught each others’ eye after Hinata pulled a particularly impressive move and Atsumu had looked equal parts thrilled and annoyed.

Worse because they lost. It had stung as always, but he’d shook Atsumu’s hand from across the net, wondering if he still remembered the promise he’d uttered last year. The grip had been strong, and when he looked into his opponent’s eyes he saw something burning and intense. That look had stayed with him for weeks after, invaded his mind even as he slept.

Then third year had happened and with it came preparations to leave Japan and then Brazil, and he’d tucked that teenage crush away and dismissed it. He moved on, it would disappear without him even knowing it was gone. He had more important things to worry about than the setter who looked at him as a rough, unsteady newbie and declared him worthy.

He genuinely thought those feelings had gone.

They had in a way. Because they paled in comparison to the inferno that raged inside his chest now. A crush on a handsome rival setter who he kinda knew was out of his league was one thing, falling head over heels in love for his close friend and teammate was something else entirely.

Since the hug it had been non-stop.

_ I want to hold his hand. _

_ I want him to hug me again. _

_ I want him to touch me more. _

_ I want him to kiss me. _

_ I want to kiss him. _

_ I want…. _

He’d always been greedy.

Except this time, he couldn’t allow himself to act on his hunger. He’d never forgive himself if he ruined the relationship he and Atsumu shared. Early on, when he’d first joined the team, he’d thought maybe Atsumu might like him. He spent more time with Hinata than any of the other members, he never really snapped at Hinata like he did some of the others, and there were moments when he’d catch Atsumu’s gaze; the fondness in them took his breath away.

He wouldn’t have fallen so quick and so hard if it hadn’t been for that damn fondness. It bled into their every interaction: every practice, every victory celebration, every joke. Atsumu just had this way of looking at him that made Hinata feel like he was the centre of the universe. Sometimes Atsumu’s gaze would follow him across the room as if he were afraid to look away, like Hinata might disappear if he didn’t keep up the constant watch. And the way Atsumu looked at him after they synced up for the first time? Wide-eyed and jubilant and face brimming with so much wonder and satisfaction that Hinata felt like a genie who’d granted a wish.

Or at least he thought that was what it was.

He’d been mistaken. 

With hope and desperation he’d turned to the person in the team he trusted above all others....after Atsumu. Bokuto had never steered him wrong before. Plus the man clearly knew what it was like to fall for your unfairly-attractive-setter and had managed to maintain a loving relationship with said setter since his third year of high school.

After sitting through the long, possibly exaggerated story of how Bokuto and Akaashi defied the odds and got together; overcoming many obstacles including misunderstandings, meddling friends, a lack of self-confidence on both sides, and for some reason a very angry goose, he still wasn’t sure how to approach his own setter situation.

Bokuto and Akaashi had been in high school. He and Atsumu were professional volleyball players, this was their job, and it would be incredibly unprofessional if they—

“You know it’s not like it’s against our contract or anything to date another player. And none of the guys here would mind really. We’ve got a pretty awesome team.”

“I—I know but….what if I ruin it? What if Atsumu hates me after I tell him?!”

The thought was so upsetting that Hinata completely missed Bokuto snorting into his palm. Thankfully, he used his other hand to ruffle Hinata’s hair.

“No way, Tsum-Tsum wouldn’t do that. Remember you’re his favourite spiker! He always looks super happy when he tosses to you.”

“Really?”

Hope was a dangerous thing.

“Oh yeah, don’t get me wrong. Tsum-Tsum always looks happy when he’s setting to any of us, but there’s something a bit more when it’s you.” Hinata had felt his cheeks heating and reached for his water bottle, hoping that no one else could hear the racing thump-thump of his heart beating furiously in his chest. “So if you want my advice, you should go for it, Hinata!”

With those encouraging words ringing in his ears he’d felt brave enough to do it. He’d attempted to practice once in front of a mirror, but it had been so stilted and awkward that he’d immediately scrapped the idea of practice, and just hoped that whatever came out of his mouth wasn’t an incoherent mess.

He’d planned to do it after the next practice: linger around in the changing room for a bit, or maybe convince Atsumu to stay behind for some one-on-one training, when it happened.

The conversation he wasn’t meant to hear.

“You need to do something about it.” The words made his ears prick up. Hinata had stayed a bit behind after practice ended, purposefully moving slower during cleaner giving him more time to psyche himself up for his impending doom. The showers had been beckoning when he’d heard Sakusa’s voice from around the corner. That usually wouldn’t have caused him pause, but then —

“No I don’t, everythin’ is fine. Really don’t see why yer so interested, Omi-kun.”

Atsumu. He’d recognise that drawl anywhere. 

Looking back, he doesn’t know why he stopped, why he didn’t carry on walking and greet them both when they came into view. Was it because it sounded vaguely personal? Was it the implication that something was wrong with Atsumu that Sakusa knew about, but Hinata didn’t? Was it because he was still nervous about what he’d say if he saw Atsumu after nearly 15 minutes of screaming ‘ _confess, idiot_ ’ in his head?

Maybe it was all of them.

But he stopped, and he listened.

“Don’t call me that, and really, fine? That’s what you’re going with.”

“Look, it’s not affectin’ the team or anythin’ so it ain’t any of your business.”

Whoa. Atsumu sounded frustrated, certainly annoyed with whatever Sakusa had cornered him about.

“I think it’s the whole team’s business if our main setter is too distracted making heart eyes at—”

Hinata tensed.

“Enough! Ya know that my performance has been great lately.”

A pause. Hinata could practically see the pair of them glaring at each other. There was no doubt that the two of them were friends, but they were just the sort of friends who rubbed each other the wrong way sometimes. 

“I don’t understand why you won’t say something to him. It’s not like he’d be an asshole about it.”

Atsumu laughed. Short, sharp, and bitter. “Of course he wouldn’t, he’d be so nice about it that i’d feel bad about inconveniencin’ him with my feelings.”

Feelings?

It sounded like…

A long sigh and Atsumu spoke again. “Sides, he’s way out of my league, not like I could hold a candle to… Anyway it doesn’t matter. I’m handlin’ it, Omi-kun, so drop it.”

Hinata had to leave. He had to go. He had to not be standing in a corridor and hearing this.

So he ran. He ran back to the gym and leant against the wall. 

There really wasn’t anyway to misunderstand that.

He slid to the floor. There was a fierce aching pain in his chest, the wound fresh and bleeding.

Of course.

He’d imagined it. Silly, naive Hinata who’d fallen head over heels for the first setter who made him feel like they were equal partners rather than just another weapon to be used.

_ There had always been a gap between him and Kageyama, present even in their last year together. Kageyama, so brilliant and amazing that it took everything Hinata had to stay in sight of his back. _

_ With Atsumu, he only ever had to look to the side. _

What a joke.

* * *

“Anyway, I decided that I wasn’t going to say anything after that, because how could I when he’s clearly into someone else on the team.”

Yachi blinked. Ok. That was a lot to process.

Hinata looked agitated, his previous calm from earlier a distant memory as he told his tale. He ran a shaky hand through his hair, and let out a sigh despondent enough to make a period drama heroine jealous.

“I don’t even know who this guy is. I mean, who could possibly be out of Atsumu-san’s league?”

She was such a bad friend, how had she not seen this before now? How long had Hinata been suffering in silence? Months according to his story.

“The thing is it didn’t go away either. I still—Why do I still feel like this even after I know that he likes someone else? There’s gotta be something wrong with me right?”

Yachi snapped herself out of her own inner spiral and gently tapped Hinata on the forehead. He blinked at her and she crossed her arms.

“There’s nothing wrong with you, Hinata-kun. You can’t help the way you feel about someone. A—And Atsumu-san isn’t actually together romantically with anyone, right?” Hinata nodded reluctantly. “It’s perfectly ok to like someone who’s single.”

“But—But I know that he wants to be with someone, and how can I say anything when he clearly doesn’t feel the same?”

Yachi looked at her friend. Her dear, sweet friend who was raking himself over the coals because he loved someone. It couldn’t go on, for his own sake above all else. But she was so bad at this! Her own romantic experience was pitifully small, a few dates here and there since high school but nothing long lasting or going very far.

Still she had to try.

“Maybe you should try to confess again.” She raised a hand to stop the instat protest she knew was coming. “For yourself this time.”

“Huh?” She’d lost him.

“I mean....maybe if you hear him say no that will help you get over him. It’s real then.” Privately, she had her doubts about what exactly Hinata had heard, but he was absolutely adamant in his belief that Atsumu liked someone else. “If it’s real, you can try to move on instead of always wondering what if.”

“But what if he doesn’t want to be friends anymore? What if he doesn’t want me as a spiker anymore?” Forlorn is not an emotion she thought she’d ever see on Hinata, and it takes her a second to decide that she hates it. His eyes looked dim, and if he kept wringing the bottom of his shirt like that, it would start to unravel.

“Do you think he would?”

“Hmm?” 

She put on her most serious face, “Do you think that Atsumu-san is the sort of person who would hate you for it?”

The response was instantaneous.

“Wha—Of course not! He’s one of the best guys I know. He’s good and kind and….” He trailed off, and Yachi picked up the rest of the sentence as realisation clicked in his head.

“...and not the sort of friend or teammate who would reject you like that?”

Her answer was a chuckle and a wry grin, but his shoulders relaxed and he didn’t look as miserable, so she’d count it as a win.

Go super friend Yachi!

“No. No, he’s not the type of guy who’d do that.”

Time to seal the deal.

“So what’s the problem with letting him know how you feel?”

Another pause. Longer this time as he considered her words instead of diving head first into panic, she knew the signs well.

“Because rejection sucks?” He ventured.

Yachi noded. “It does, a—and there’s no getting around it, but do you think it’ll get any better if you don’t say anything?”

Hinata laughed at that and shook his head. “No, I’m not the sort of guy to stay stuck in one place.”

“You’re not,” she said, and anyone who’d ever known Hinata for longer than ten seconds would agree with her. “And I know that you’re strong enough to get through this. You’re one of the bravest people I know, after all.”

The evening breeze sent a chill along her skin. It was probably time to head back inside, but only once she knew that Hinata would be ok.

“Yeah... Hey, Yachi.”

“Hmmm?”

“Thanks.”

He looked better, that special light that made Hinata  _ Hinata  _ was back in his eyes, and he was smiling again. His usual resolve settling back over his shoulders like a well worn cloak. Without saying another word, they both head back into the restaurant. 

When the time came for the final toast Yachi wished for Hinata’s happiness.

* * *

Game nights have become something of a tradition for the MSBY Black Jackals volleyball team. A notorious one, but a tradition nonetheless. The problem comes when you take a group of competitive, athletic men and stick them in an equally competitive environment where their usual teamwork means nothing.

It’s every man for himself.

Victory is the only acceptable outcome.

And they will fight with all of their strength to achieve it.

There is a certified list of banned games that this group of 20+ year olds are not allowed to play anymore:

Snap — Bokuto nearly broke Meian’s fingers after a too eager snap down. Apparently, it was difficult for him to regulate his strength in the excitement, and he smacked the table, and Meian’s slightly quicker hand, with all the force that he hit spikes. This was the incident which started  _ The List. _

Go Fish — one too many rounds of Atsumu calling Tomas a ‘dirty cheater’ and Barnes had needed to step in and separate the two from strangling each other with their bare hands. Hinata and Bokuto hadn’t helped the matter by betting on who would win (Hinata backed Atsumu of course) which only fuelled the combatants competitive nature more.

Uno — who knew that Inunaki could scream so loud or that he could do so in fluent German? Sakusa still swore that the game was rigged after he was subjected to his sixth +4 card of the night.

Mario Kart — now this one had a condition attached. They could still play the game but only if items were disabled. Atsumu and Hinata had the closest thing they’d had to a fallout after Atusmu blue shelled him on the finish line. Nobody was happy when Bokuto’s last minute bullet bill earned him second place, and the amount of shrieking when Tomas snatched victory from Meian with the creative use of a red shell earned their captain a noise complaint.

Overcooked — this was the day they learnt how many foreign swear words Hinata, Tomas, Inunaki and Barnes knew between them. Also, Bokuto wasn’t allowed unsupervised in a kitchen, real or virtual, ever again.

Monopoly — look the less said on this one the better. Apparently, Sakusa took monopoly very,  _ very  _ seriously, and he did not appreciate being beaten by Hinata using what he called blind luck. Inunaki was still finding plastic houses in his sofa a month after the incident.

So there was a list. And because of the list and other games similar to the ones on the list, they tended to stick to more juvenile games, ones that teenagers did that weren’t really a competition. They still found ways to make it competitive of course but they tended to be less hazardous to the player’s health. 

Games like ‘Three Truths and a Lie’, ‘Kiss, Marry, Kill’, ‘Never have I Ever’ and of course ‘Truth or Dare.’ Games which were less likely to end in death threats or physical confrontation — most of the time — and which had the added bonus of learning a great deal of personal information about one another. Hinata felt that he really knew his teammates after playing, and it proved that you really couldn’t judge a book by it’s cover.

Meian had been a bit of a delinquent in high school. He’d been about ten seconds from getting a full sleeve tattoo, until his mother had stormed into the parlour and ripped him and the unfortunate tattooist to shreds with her words. The teenage Meian hadn’t been allowed to leave the house for a month except to attend school and practice.

“Turned out to be one of the best things she ever did for me, without anything else to distract me I got real hooked on volleyball,” their captain had told them, his voice fond and eyes staring at something that the rest of them couldn’t see. “Even told me so when I first signed for a pro team.” They’d all laughed and while the image of their calm, responsible, rule-abiding captain was not as accurate as Hinata had first thought, it was nice to know he wasn’t the only one who’d been an idiot in high school.

Far from it.

Inunaki was allergic to dogs and still had to ask for directions in his hometown. He’d also spent a year abroad in Europe, and very nearly gotten engaged to a lovely french woman before he’d realised what was happening.

“Don’t get me wrong, Eloise was perfectly sweet and pretty, but we had too little in common it wouldn’t have worked out.”

“Huh, here I thought the problem was that you had one particular thing in common?” That was Tomas.

“Ya told me it’s because ya were better at flirtin’ with guys than she was.” And that was Atsumu.

“Shut up! Anyway, irreconcilable differences forced us apart, a true tragedy.”

It was really cool, learning all the little stories and memories that made up his friends’ lives. Tomas was half German, half Italian and always brought the best snacks. The butterbrezels he baked for one night were gone within the hour, and the recipe, passed down from his mother and grandmother, was one of the most well guarded secrets in the world.

Atsumu was the older twin. He hated flying on planes with a passion and had once baked cupcakes using salt instead of sugar. Neither his parents nor his brother ever let him forget it. 

“I mean it’s not like I cared or anythin’,” he’d said, but Hinata knew him well enough by then to notice the pout and the slight frown marring his forehead. He cared. Then Atsumu had grinned, fond and unbearably proud. “Sides, clearly cookin’ wasn’t my path to take.” Suddenly, Atsumu as the big brother of the twins hadn’t seemed as outlandish as before. 

Barnes had been a tiny kid when he was younger, 155cm until he’d turned 15 and begun to grow like a weed. Hinata could only imagine how his younger self would have reacted to that, probably a lot of teeth gnashing and jealousy, but now it was amusing to hear how Barnes’ family had despaired as he grew out of yet another pair of trousers. 

Bokuto was awful at ‘Kiss, Marry, Kill’ because if Akaashi was one of the options he’d struggle between choosing to marry or kiss him and would ask if he could kill the other two instead, or if Akaashi wasn’t one of the options, he wouldn’t choose because he couldn’t imagine being with anyone else apart from his boyfriend. He was surprisingly good at ‘Three Truths and a Lie’ given how open and honest he was. Sakusa had nearly quit the team when he’d believed that Bokuto hadn’t washed his bedding in four months, but no, apparently Bokuto had once proven that an entire three pages in his first year mathematics text book were incorrect. 

Sakusa was the youngest of four siblings and had once swapped his elder sister’s shampoo for green hair dye and blamed it on his brother. He’d gotten away with it as well. Atsumu had looked pretty pale during this story, though this may have been due to Sakusa looking him dead in the eye while telling it. His other sister, the one closest to him in age, was a doctor and while she was usually very busy, she always managed to attend some of the Black Jackals games in person. The entire team’s jaws had collectively dropped the first time they’d met the bubbly, cheerful Sakusa Nazuka. Tomas had been two seconds away from asking her out before Sakusa’s glare had reminded him that he really liked being alive.

Hinata had shared stories of some of his more terrifying bathroom encounters and how he and Kageyama had very nearly been rejected from joining the Karasuno Boys’ Volleyball Club. At that story, most of the team had burst into laughter, but Hinata had been looking at Atsumu — as usual — and he swore that the setter looked horrified for half a second. The look had passed, and Atsumu had chuckled along with the rest of them.

“Well now, Shouyou-kun, that woulda been a real shame if ya hadn’t fixed it,” he’d said with a slow smile that always made Hinata feel warm. “Can’t imagine my high school years without playing against ya.”

Crap. 

It’s so bad.

And unfair. How was he supposed to pretend to be a normal functioning adult when Atsumu said shit like that to him? His face had burned bright red, and he’d only managed a weak craok of ascent before thankfully, Sakusa, his saviour, had asked more about his partnership with Kageyama in high school. That was a topic he could talk about with only half his brain working, and he’d latched on to the offered lifeline in an attempt to rescue some dignity. 

Stories of serves to the back of the head, yells, victories, losses, and arguments spilled from his mouth with ease. And underneath it all a shared desire to beat not only the opposing team but each other as well. Luckily, Atsumu had been really interested in what he’d been saying and hadn’t mentioned Hinata’s earlier obvious blunder.

So games nights were fun, informative, and after a few additions to  _ The List _ , unlikely to end with a civil war.

The next one fell one week after the Karasuno reunion, and Atsumu was hosting. It was a bit of a squash fitting all of them into the living room, and they had to rearrange the furniture to make space, but soon enough they were all sitting in a rough circle on the floor. Tomas had brought ‘Risk’ with him along with the usual supply of delicious baked goods. Meian had his reservations, but Inunaki had convinced him to give it a go, that this would be completely different to monopoly.

They’d actually managed to complete one game and were halfway through the second before he threatened to add it to  _ The List _ after Sakusa flipped the board when Bokuto conquered Australia...again. In light of the rising tension they’d fallen back on the old faithfuls, and tonight was a ‘Truth or Dare’ night.

The empty bottle spun, glass glinting under the ceiling lamp, and Hinata watched it with a wary eye. It was Sakusa’s turn to spin. He’d survived Bokuto’s dare to eat five tablespoons of mustard with admirable fortitude, but there was a glint in his eye that did not bode well for the next  victim player.

Round and round it spun.

Hinata knew he was being quieter than usual. Tomas had asked if he was ok, and Meian had been shooting him concerned looks after he had only chuckled at Barnes’ attempt to drink a glass of water while standing on his hands instead of laughing himself into tears. He’d brushed them off with an excuse about being tired after practice and tried to focus on the game instead of his conversation with Yachi from last week.

_ “So what’s the problem with letting him know how you feel?” _

Whatever happened, anything was better than the weird, tense stalemate he currently found himself in. It wasn’t fair to the team if he couldn’t give them 100%. More importantly, it wasn't fair to Atsumu if Hinata couldn’t act like a real friend because of the stupid knot of feelings in his chest that strangled every word he said to the other.

He could do this.

He’d flown to the other side of the world, to a country he didn’t know more than ten facts about, and broken himself down under the sweltering sun only to rebuild stronger than before.

He’d returned to Japan a virtual unknown, waltzed into the tryouts for one of the top teams in the country, and earned his spot amongst the monsters of the game.

He’d finally caught up to Kageyama, finally able to look him in the eye and say, ‘I’m here,’ after years of chasing that felt utterly fruitless at times. He’d clawed his way to the starting line.

Surely, this was nothing compared to all of that?

“Hinata?” 

He’d zoned out again.

“Bwah! Yes?” He snapped his focus back to the present and  — yep, great — everyone was staring at him. Sakusa pointed down and raised an eyebrow. Seriously, how did he have such great control over them? Whenever Hinata tried to copy it he ended up looking like a shocked chipmunk. Hinata’s eyes followed and sure enough, the tip of the bottle was pointed straight in his direction.

“Your go, truth or dare.”

He was having a difficult battle with truth at the moment so…

“Dare.” He’d also never minded making a fool out of himself, two years with Tanaka and Noya had taught him well.

He was wearing a mask, but Hinata would swear on his signed Romero poster that Sakusa smirked at him after he uttered that word.

“I dare you to sit on Atsumu’s lap for the rest of the game.”

_ WHAT _

“What!”

“Omi-kun!”

Bokuto had the gaul to laugh at this new, unexpected disaster and waved a hand in Hinata’s direction.

“You’re being nice then Omi-Omi? That doesn’t seem too bad.”

Bad?!

This was a catastrophe!

There was nothing nice about it. And Bokuto knew it because Yachi hadn’t been the only person he’d poured his Atsumu-obsessed heart out to. Clearly a massive mistake. Golden eyes met his own and winked.

Forget whatever he said before, he had the worst teammates in the world.

Hinata turned to look at Atsumu. Atsumu was looking at him. Their eyes met, and nobody could tell who turned red faster. Hinata watched, transfixed, as a gorgeous pink flush spread across Atsumu’s face from the tips of his ears all the way down to his neck, down until the view was stopped by the barrier of his shirt collar.

_ Pretty. _

_ How much further did it— _

_ NOT THE TIME! _

“But you’re involving Atsumu in that. It’s not his dare,” he argued. Did he need a lawyer for this? His own tongue felt thick in his mouth so maybe finding someone else to speak for him would be better. Sakusa looked around at the others and shrugged.

“It’s happened before. Remember when Meian-san had to switch clothes with Inunaki, technically that wasn’t his dare either.” Meian shuddered at the memory of ripped stitches and a shirt so tight he wouldn’t have been blamed for mistaking it for a corset.

“B-But still I—”

“Unless of course you have a problem with it, Hinata.” Sakusa drawled. Hinata’s mouth snapped shut because godamn if that wasn’t the same tone of voice Natsu used whenever she had him right where she wanted him. There was no right answer to the question, not really, and Sakusa  _ knew _ which meant that he had to know exactly  _ why _ this was a problem for Hinata.

Why the problem was that his heart very much did not consider it a problem at all.

“No, of course not.”

“And you, Miya?” Hinata’s breath caught in his throat. So wrapped up in his own panicked, internal screaming he hadn’t even thought how Atsumu must feel about it. Would he be freaked out? Would he refuse to? It was really weird to have your adult friend that you had strictly platonic feelings for sit in your lap, right? Honestly, Hinata wouldn’t blame him if he did say no.

“I—I mean if Shouyou-kun’s fine with it then so am I.”

What?

_ YES _

Stupid traitourous heart. 

Atsumu was sat directly to his left so Hinata had to completely turn his head to look back at him. He was looking across the circle at Sakusa but flicked a glance towards Hinata when he turned. Atsumu smiled, a weak version of his usual one but still real, and shrugged his shoulders. Big, broad shoulders that Hinata wanted to dig his nails into and—

“It’s just a dare after all. Would hate for ya to lose because of me.”

Like Hinata could ever lose with Atsumu on his side.

“Uhhh, okay then. Here I go?” He trailed off questioningly and began to push himself off the floor. For the first time since his first year of high school his limbs felt out of his control. He moved clunkily, with none of his usual sharpness, and the snickering emitting from the other half of the circle did nothing to help. 

Slowly, as if he was approaching some kind of wild animal, Hinata lowered himself onto Atsumu’s lap as he sat cross-legged on the floor. It was awkward and he ended up sliding down one of his knees before an arm wrapped around him, holding him firmly in place.

“Ya okay there?” The question was asked directly against his ear, he could almost feel Atsumu’s lips form the words. The arm on his waist was warm and heavy, it held him securely against Atsumu’s chest but didn’t cage him. 

_ Bu-bump _

Hinata sucked in a breath as the rest of the world muted to an unintelligible buzz.

_ Bu-bump _

_ Bu-bump _

He leaned into the embrace, his back pressed right up against Atsumu’s chest.

_ Bu-bump _

Atsumu’s heart was racing so fast it almost matched his own.

“Y—Yeah. This is—”

_ Wonderful _

“—fine. It’s fine.”

A second arm wrapped around his chest.

“Good.”

Atsumu’s voice was hoarse, and Hinata’s mind prickled with awareness at  _ something _ . Something that was so close yet just out of reach no matter how far he stretched out his hand. He had to see Atsumu’s face. His neck wasn’t going to thank him, but he craned it back and looked up. Atsumu was still red, still red and pink and handsome, and looking at Hinata with such fondness that whatever words he was about to say died in his throat. 

People had often compared Hinata to the sun which he always kinda understood: he was a bright, friendly guy with loads of energy, his hair was even orange, and more than one of his friends had mentioned his natural charisma that drew others to him like gravity. But it always niggled him just a little. The comparison to something that was always out of reach, out of touch, uncaring of the planets stuck in its orbit, and too brilliant to even see.

Why would he want to be something that hurt to look at? That sounded so lonely,

Atsumu wasn’t looking at him like that.

Atsumu was looking at Shouyou like it would hurt to look away. Like he never wanted to take his eyes off him. Like he did whenever Hinata spiked one of his tosses.

But now they’re close, bodies pressed up together for ease through the machinations of their teammates, and now Hinata can see everything in Atsumu’s eyes.

Eyes that shine with that  _ something  _ he’d been looking for.

His breath caught in his throat.

_ Could he? _

“Yo, earth to Hinata? Your turn to spin,” He jolted his head back round. Reality reset itself into place, and he was able to breathe once more. Barnes pointed at the bottle. “Unless you’re skipping?”

“No,” he laughed and reached forward, keenly aware of how his body moved to do so and the arms tightening around him.

The bottle spun.

Stopped.

“Meian-san, truth or dare?”

The night lasts another two hours, the game for only another thirty minutes before they swap over to the ‘safe’ version of Mario Kart. Thirty minutes, but it felt much longer and too short at the same time.

Whatever happened, Hinata would have the memory of what it felt like to be held in Atsumu’s arms if nothing else. That and the look in his eyes when Hinata turned to look at him.

Perhaps it was foolish but they gave him hope.

The rest of the Jackals have left. Tomas and Inunaki lived close to one another, and had to catch the same bus. Barnes had hosted the last game night. Bokuto had to pick up Akaashi from the train station. Meian and Sakusa had both offered to help, but Hinata got there first and Atsumu waved them off assuring them that he and Hinata would be more than enough to clean up.

“Don’t make Hinata do all the work.”

“Wha—I wasn’t plannin’ to, Omi-kun!”

“Hmmm.”

“What the hell's that supposed to mean?”

Meian turned to Hinata and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“You sure you don’t want any help?” he asked, eyes flickering over to the table strewn with drinks and leftovers. Hinata smiled and nodded,

“Yeah, we got this. Atsumu-san and I make a pretty good team.”

Meian looked at him, then at Asumu, then back at him and chuckled, “You sure do.” Before making his goodbyes to Atsumu and dragging Sakusa away to prevent any further arguments. Atsumu crossed his arms and glared at the door.

“Ugh, I hate that guy. Why do we invite him to these things again?”

“Because he’s one of your best friends, and if he wasn’t here you’d complain about it?”

“Not the answer I’m lookin’ for, Shouyou-kun.”

“But it’s the right one.” He ducked out of the way as a plastic bottle  —  thrown with the accuracy of a pro-setter  —  was launched at his head. Ignoring the grumblings of ‘betrayed by my favourite spiker’ and saving the warm feeling they created for later, Hinata rolled up his sleeves and started to clean. They hadn’t been too messy, and the majority was done in fifteen minutes. The kitchen floor would need mopping, but Atsumu was sure it would be fine until tomorrow.

Their talk trailed off as they both realised that there was nothing left for them to clean.

Ok.

Deep breaths.

He could do this.

Hinata opened his mouth to speak.

“Want to watch a movie together?” And promptly closed it as Atsumu moved towards the television. Was it just him or had his voice sounded higher than normal.

“Uh,” not exactly what he planned but it gave him an excuse to stay, “sure, anything you want to watch?”

“You pick something,” Atsumu pointed to an impressive stack of DVDs on a shelf, “I’m just going to change out of this shirt. It’s still damp from Bokkun trying to drink whatever the captain whipped up.”

Yeah, that had been messy. Hinata had ducked to the side, managing to avoid most of the splash, but it had left Atsumu’s chest exposed. Thankfully, that had been the last round. He scanned over the film titles and found an old adventure film that he recognised. It would fill the time and give him an excuse to zone out as he tried to figure out how to broach the topic of his confession.

“Ya find one?”

“Yeah I—” Hinata looked behind him, film case in hand, and immediately forgot how to speak. It was official, Atsumu was trying to kill him. That was the only explanation for the tight, form-fitting black T-shirt that currently adorned his chest. His arms, the ones that had held Hinata for a good half an hour, were exposed and were more suited to one of those ancient Greek statues than a living human. “I found one.” He squeaked out and rushed to the television set.

By silent agreement they ended up on the couch. Neither of them were hungry after the earlier snacking, so they didn’t have to worry about making more of a mess, and the couch was big enough for two. 

Just about.

Hinata wasn’t sure who moved first. All he knew was that sometime between Act 1 and Act 2 of the movie, whose plot he had completely forgotten, he was somehow pressed side to side against Atsumu. 

_ Bu-bump _

Atsumu was warm and sturdy, still tall enough that Hinata had to look up to see his face. There was an odd tingling in his body. It felt like electricity setting all his nerves alight and sparking, all emanating from the spot where Atsumu’s body met his.

It wouldn’t take much.

He could test the waters, right?

Hinata leant his head against Atsumu’s shoulder. For such a small action, it caused an explosion of thoughts and feelings. But Hinata pushed them all down and waited, waited to see what Atsumu would do next.

On the screen the hero dangled from a cliff as the villain began his cheesy monologue that would no doubt give the hero just enough time to save himself.

Atsumu laid his arm on Hinata’s shoulder, he couldn’t stop the small hitch in his breath anymore than he could look away from the pointless scene in front of him.

Oh god.

This was it.

One minute.

Three minutes.

Five minutes.

Deep breaths.

He looked up. Atsumu was looking back. The thread between them pulled tight at last. Before he knew it Hinata was moving closer, stretching his neck up.

_ Did you know? _

And Atsumu was there, meeting him halfway.

_ How much I want you? _

Atsumu’s eyes are molten, zeroed in on Hinata’s face, and the arm on his shoulder slipped down to his waist.

_ Did you see? _

But—

_ The way I looked at you? _

Hinata pulled back. He caught a fleeting glimpse of Atsumu’s utterly disappointed face before he started babbling. Babbling like he hasn’t done in years, words pulled from his heart carelessly, heedless to whether or not they make sense in his desperate rush to speak, to voice aloud the knowledge that had wanted to break free ever since he realised how much he cared about the man in front of him.

“—and then you smiled and I—I couldn’t help it, Atsumu-san. You were just so good and kind, but you were my friend so what was I supposed to do—”

He wasn’t looking at Atsumu. He’s focusing on a spot on the wall just behind his head because if he looked at Atsumu his throat was going to seal up again, and he couldn’t let that happen.

“—do you have any idea how hard it was not to say anything to you? But I couldn’t because what if I ruined it? What if we couldn’t work together anymore—”

He could barely hear himself over the pounding in his chest. Get it out. Get it all out. 

“—then you hugged me, and I looked at you, and I thought maybe you might like me back, but that can’t be because you like someone else so—”

For some reason, that is when Atsumu snapped.

“What? Whoa, whoa, whoa, back up a bit. What makes ya think I like someone else?” Hinata paused and sat back on his knees. Right, he wasn’t meant to have heard that.

“Ah, I kinda heard you and Sakusa talking about this guy you liked and look I know okay, I know that you don’t—”

Wait.

Hold the phone.

What had Atsumu just said?

What makes you think I like someone else? Not ‘what makes you think I like someone’ but ‘someone else’. Else. Else as in someone else other...than...Hinata?

Atsumu ran a hand through his hair and gently, ever so gently, placed his hand under Hinata’s chin and tilted his head upwards so that they were looking each other straight in the eye. 

“I knew that I shoulda killed Omi-kun.” He sounded nervous. Hinata moved to pull back, but Atsumu’s hand was firm. “I wasn’t talkin’ about some other guy, Shouyou, I was talkin about  _ you. _ ”

_ You. _

But that meant what Atsumu had said back then…

_ He’s way out of my league. _

The guy Atsumu thought he didn’t have a chance with was him?

Hinata blinked. Then blinked again. Then blinked a third time for good measure because if those first two blinks hadn’t restarted his brain then maybe the third one would.

“You...you like me?” 

Atsumu huffed, like the answer was obvious, and stroked Hinata’s cheek with his thumb. It felt like a brand, red hot and pulsing on his skin.

“Yeah, I really like ya, Shouyou-kun. Way more than I should but I do.”

Hinata’s brain had not yet completed it’s recovery. “B—But you said the guy was out of your league.”

Atsumu moved closer. So close that Hinata could do something silly like count his eyelashes, or stupid like try and kiss him again. His mind fell silent once more. “I did.”

“I’m not though, I’m just me.” It was Hinata’s turn to move now. His turn to take the next step. He pressed his forehead against Atsumu’s, seeking understanding in his face.

“Just you then, and I’m just me. Seems that we like each other despite all that.”

And maybe there’s another L-word Hinata wants to use. Another word that more accurately described the giddy joy and relief that flooded his veins as Atsumu’s meaning finally started to sink in.

Maybe they're more than enough for the other.

And maybe Atsumu wanted to use that other L-word too.

“Seems like we do,” Hinata whispered as he closed the distance between them. Atsumu met him in the middle, and this time neither of them pulled back. 

* * *

The next Karasuno reunion happened much sooner than Yachi thought it would. But then again it was more of a mini-reunion than last time, composed only of her and the other baby crows. 

Well, them and their plus ones.

They weren’t in Miyagi either. No, this time they’d descended Hyogo, and they’d all agreed to meet up at this nice onigiri place that Hinata had recommended.

Well, that Hinata’s boyfriend had recommended, not surprising since he was the owner’s brother. Yachi took another bite of her delicious umeboshi onigiri and settled back to enjoy the scene in front of her. Yamaguchi caught her eye and smiled, the pair of them happy to step back from the bickering of their friends.

It was something about Tsukishima’s blocking in the latest Sendai Frogs’ game. Her fellow blonde was throwing barbs at a prickly looking Kageyama while Hinata laughed in the background, annoying both of them. Kuroo was seated next to his boyfriend, and it wasn’t clear yet if he was playing devil’s advocate or just wanted to wind him up. Most likely a mixture of both. From where she sat, Yachi could just about see their hands intertwined under the table.

Kageyama would pause the  argument creative discussion at times to answer a question from Kunimi which only seemed to irritate Tsukishima more. It didn’t help that Kunimi wasn’t the type of guy to get riled up easily and just stared at Tsukishima with blank indifference whenever one of those snide comments came his way. From the way Kageyama was smiling, this hadn’t gone unnoticed.

Then there were the last two of their group.

Yachi smiled and opened her phone. She went into the baby crows group chat and scrolled back about three months to the photo that had been meant for her but sent to the whole group by mistake. To be fair Hinata had been pretty distracted at the time.

The photo was amateurish and the lighting wasn’t great, but the happiness of the couple radiated off the screen. In it, Hinata was beaming at the camera, one eye closed as Atsumu clumsily kissed his cheek. The chat had exploded below.

**Hinata: THANK YOU YACHI!**

**Hinata: ‘Tsumu says thank you too ♥‿♥**

**Kageyama: Is this some new training technique?**

**Yamaguchi: HINATA!! Congratulations! Why didn’t you tell us you liked someone?**

**Tsukishima: If you wanted to thank Yachi why did we all have to see this?**

**Yamaguchi: Don’t be rude Tsukki ಠ_ಠ**

**Tsukishima: Whatever, it’s not like anyone else could keep with him. Even the king struggled sometimes.**

**Hinata: YOU WEREN’T MEANT TO SEE THAT**

**Hinata: I sent it to the wrong chat**

**Yachi: I’m so happy for you, Hinata-kun (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧ I hope that you and Atsumu-kun are very happy together.**

**Yamaguchi: You told Yachi before you told me!!!??? (ಥ﹏ಥ)**

**Kageyama: I’m still going to beat you next time.**

**Hinata: Bring it on Tobio-kun (¬‿¬)**

**Tsukishima: That was him wasn’t it?**

**Hinata: He distracted me and took my phone!**

**Kageyama: How did he distract you?**

**Hinata: Well we were kissing on his couch.**

**Tsukishima: If you type one more word I’m deleting the group.**

Looking at them now it was easy to see how well they fit each other, how naturally their chemistry on the court had moved to life off it. Hinata was half sat on his chair, half on Atsumu’s lap. The setter’s head was resting on Hinata’s shoulder and every now and then would nuzzle against his neck. That usually happened whenever either Tsukishima or Kageyama said something that caused him to huff and ready an argument. Atsumu would bury his face against HInata’s skin and whisper something that never failed to turn her friend a very pleased shade of red. 

It was so cute.

She had about five more photos on her phone that Atsumu had already asked her for. So caught up in her happiness for her friend she didn’t realise her plate was empty until she reached for food that wasn’t there. She looked down at the hand which had betrayed her.

“Ya want some more, Yacchan? It’s on me, so don’t worry about gettin’ seconds.” 

It did feel like she was taking advantage of him, but the onigiri were so tasty and it was okay to be selfish now and then. This would be her selfish act for the month.

“Thank you, Atsumu-kun. I’ll be right back.”

There was no queue at the counter, as she waited for someone to take her order her eyes scanned the menu in front of her. It all sounded so good! She didn’t know what to try. Yachi vaguely remembered Atsumu’s brother from high school. They’d only played each other twice after all, and matches didn’t tend to stick with her the same way they did the players. He was an absolutely fantastic cook, and she hoped to thank him before she left. Her train had been late so by the time she’d arrived the busy man was already in the kitchen.

“What can I get ya, miss?”

“Oh, I’ll have the tuna please.” 

A soft chuckle.

“M’glad ya liked the first one so much that ya came back for seconds.”

Yachi made the mistake of looking up.

Oh.

This must be the brother.

Miya Osamu was the mirror image of the man currently acting as a chair for Hinata, bar the hair colour of course. Given that he wasn’t a professional athlete, his physique was impressive and wow, ok. Yep, he was very, very handsome. 

“Ahhh, Y—Yeah I mean why wouldn’t I? It was so good and yummy, and you m-must really put a lot of work into your food.”

Brain to mouth connection terminated. Abort! Abort!

The unfairly handsome, young, ambitious, head chef of his own restaurant smiled at her and leaned over the counter. 

Was it just her imagination or were his ears a little pink?

“Thanks for the compliment, gotta say if my brother had mentioned someone as cute as you was coming, I’d have let him have the meal for free.”

Oh dear.

_ Bu-bump _


End file.
